Self-propelled device with actively engaged drive system

Abstract

A self-propelled device is provided including a drive system, a spherical housing, and a biasing mechanism. The drive system includes one or more motors that are contained within the spherical housing. The biasing mechanism actively forces the drive system to continuously engage an interior of the spherical housing in order to cause the spherical housing to move.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A self-propelled device comprising:
 a drive system comprising one or more motors; 
 a spherical housing that contains the drive system; 
 a support structure coupled to the drive system to cause the one or more wheels to continuously engage an inner surface of the spherical housing and cause the spherical housing to move; 
 a sensor array contained within the spherical housing; 
 a wireless communication port that receives control commands control inputs on a controller device; and 
 a processor to implement the control commands on the drive system as three-dimensional rotational commands to maneuver the self-propelled device. 
 
     
     
       2. The self-propelled device of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor array comprises one or more of:
 a 3-axis gyroscope sensor; 
 a 3-axis accelerometer sensor; 
 a 3-axis magnetometer sensor; or 
 a receiver for a global positioning system (GPS). 
 
     
     
       3. The self-propelled device of  claim 2 , wherein the processor is further operable to filter data from the sensor array to determine accurate state estimates of the self-propelled device. 
     
     
       4. The self-propelled device of  claim 3 , wherein filtering the data comprises at least one of removing data distorted by noise or removing redundant data. 
     
     
       5. The self-propelled device of  claim 1 , further comprising a program library, the program library comprising instructions to respond to the control commands. 
     
     
       6. The self-propelled device of  claim 5 , wherein the programming library comprises a program runtime, wherein, when selected, the program runtime is executed by the processor to perform operations comprising one or more of:
 interpret the control commands; 
 control the self-propelled device movement based upon the control commands; or 
 communicate information from the self-propelled device to the controller device via the wireless communication port. 
 
     
     
       7. The self-propelled device of  claim 5 , wherein the program library further comprises sensor control logic that, when executed by the processor, interprets sensor data from the sensor array to perform operations comprising one or more of controlling speed, direction, or movement of the drive system. 
     
     
       8. The self-propelled device of  claim 5 , wherein the program library further comprises input control logic that, when executed by the processor, interprets the control commands received from the controller device. 
     
     
       9. The self-propelled device of  claim 8 , wherein the input control logic is program specific, such that the input control logic may differ according to a specific program being executed by either the self-propelled device or the controller device. 
     
     
       10. The self-propelled device of  claim 1 , further comprising an output interface, wherein the output interface generates feedback data which is sent to the controller device via the wireless communication port. 
     
     
       11. The self-propelled device of  claim 10 , wherein the feedback data comprises one or more of:
 position data for the self-propelled device; 
 state data; or 
 orientation data. 
 
     
     
       12. The self-propelled device of  claim 10 , wherein the output interface is further operable to identify events based upon data generated by the sensor array. 
     
     
       13. The self-propelled device of  claim 10 , wherein the output interface is further operable to generate program specific output for an executed runtime program, wherein the self-propelled device is operable to execute a plurality of different runtime programs. 
     
     
       14. The self-propelled device of  claim 1 , further comprising a robot application programming interface, wherein the robot application programming interface comprises instructions that, when executed by the processor, are operable to cause the processor to perform operations comprising one or more of:
 control hardware for the self-propelled device; 
 monitor the hardware of the self-propelled device; or 
 perform device functions. 
 
     
     
       15. The self-propelled device of  claim 14 , wherein the self-propelled device further comprises user instructions that interface with the robot application interface to cause the self-propelled device to perform a function. 
     
     
       16. The self-propelled device of  claim 15 , wherein the user functions are received from a user via the controller device. 
     
     
       17. The self-propelled device of  claim 15 , wherein the user functions are downloaded from one or more of a website or a software repository. 
     
     
       18. The self-propelled device of  claim 1 , further comprising a display. 
     
     
       19. The self-propelled device of  claim 1 , wherein the display is operable to change color based upon movement of the self-propelled device. 
     
     
       20. The self-propelled device of  claim 1 , further comprising one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs), wherein the one or more LEDs change color based upon the movement of the self-propelled device.